THE TWO SENTENCE
TESTIMONY
I changed careers several times over 30 years while sitting
at the same chair and desk at Sunrise Engineering. As the number of employees grew, Sunrise
changed. When we first started, I did
everything. But, over time as talented
employees filled critical needs, my focus changed and I became a: designer, project engineer, senior engineer,
quality control manager, business manager, funding specialist, business
development manager, marketing director, in addition to President and CEO. Business development taught me many things.
We would often write detailed proposals to do a specific
project for a potential client.
Competition was keen. The
client’s selection committee would read the proposals submitted by competing
engineering firms and then short-list 3 firms for interviews. We learned that reviewers are skimmers not
readers. In order to move to the short
list, it was absolutely paramount for reviewers, who skim read our proposal, to
understand our theme and unique approach.
This information had to be easily picked up in the first few sentences
of our approach to the work and how we will solve project issues. We had to
quickly differentiate ourselves from all the others so the client understood why
we are the best selection for the project.
We developed what we called “Elevator Speeches.” This is a concise and clear statement of who
Sunrise is and how we assist clients. We
used different speeches to fit different specialties we offered. We used the elevator speech all the time when
making sales calls. In theory, if you
are at a conference and a water district president steps in an elevator with
you, while the elevator is headed for his floor he glances at your name tag and
asks, “Sunrise Engineering, what do you guys do?” Your opportunity to present yourself is gone
when the elevator door opens and he leaves.
What you say must be short, powerful, personal and persuasive. I find contacting people in missionary work
to be very similar.
The 2 Sentence
Testimony is the elevator speech by members and missionaries. This was developed by Misha Rahmen van Eden, of
the Zoetermeer Ward in preparation of the open-house to their new ward building. It is a method to immediately teach and
testify to people you meet or contact. The
objective is to teach with 2 sentences a principle of the restored gospel of
Jesus Christ, testify that it is true and do this with words that do not
offend, sound pushy or condescending. You
do this by stating a doctrine that you have had a meaningful experience with,
not just any principle, and state what you felt or learned from that experience;
it is not a statement of what the contact should be doing or feeling.
As Church members, you come in contact with people daily. Your contact may be in the store, on public
transportation, at work, a chance meeting, a Face Book post, etc. It is important to find a comfortable and
appropriate way to expose people to your faith during these moments of
interaction. By listening to what people
say, then expressing your similar experience and what you learned or felt can
be the bridge to teach in good taste a gospel principle and testify. What is needed is a short powerful personal
statement of your experience and your feelings.
Full-time missionaries are more aggressive than members because
they initiate contact with as many people as possible on the street or knocking
on doors. Because missionaries have
essentially ambushed the person approached, the person they contacted probably
does not have time, at that moment, to jump into a long gospel discussion with
a stranger but they will usually politely listen to what you have to say, if
it is short. Therefore it is
important to make contact with a short powerful statement.
Time and content are the key ingredients for the 2 Sentence Testimony. After 2 or 3 sentences by you, most people
contacted on the street might begin rejecting you. Therefore it is important to say something
immediately that will teach and testify.
If they have no interest to talk further then at least you gave the
spirit a chance to testify to them instead of only delivering a wordy
introduction before rejection. This is
what is meant by PMG p. 158 to “teach when you find.”
Your testimony is personal knowledge of something that is
true. The Guide to the Scriptures
states: to Testify or a Testimony - is
to bear witness by the power of the Holy Ghost; to make a solemn declaration of
truth based on personal knowledge or belief.
The 2 Sentence Testimony is a
declaration of truth and is based on your personal knowledge or belief of
truth.
24
And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and
as they were, and as they are to come; (DC 93:24)
Nephi understood the importance of the Holy Ghost with
testimony as he said he was not:
1 …mighty in
writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by
the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the
hearts of the children of men. (2 Nephi
33:1)
Sentence One – the Situation or Experience: Think of a personal, specific experience that
is really important to you, where the gospel or church has affected your
life. Then in one short sentence,
write a description of that situation or experience. Write your statement and work on the wording
so it clearly, concisely and accurately describes your situation or
experience. Edit your statement to
eliminate unnecessary words. It may be
easier for you to first write your situation or experience with a few sentences
and then condense it to one short powerful statement. Be brief, eliminate the story and get right
to what happened to you. Keep it on one
topic and make another 2 Sentence
Testimony for other topics. For
example:
The Situation - Long Version: As I grew up with my family on the farm, I
believed that God existed but I knew I was separated from him. With this separation, it was difficult for me
to maintain a strong belief in God. My
sisters all believed without the doubt I experienced. Also, if He existed, I wondered how I could
find happiness and please God with my every day decisions of where to go or
what to do?
Now The Situation – Condensed
to One Sentence: “Because we live in this world out of God’s presence, I
wondered how to make daily choices that would bring me happiness.”
Sentence Two – How you felt from this experience. State in one short sentence, how you feel or
what you learned as a result of this experience. Do not over-do it. A simple clear explanation of how you felt
and what you learned is most effective. Continuing
after the situation statement above for example:
How I Felt – One Sentence: “I found that reading the Book of Mormon
every day gives me answers to concerns and gives me direction on where to go
and what to do.”
As with the elevator speech, most people will find more
success if they actually write their 2
Sentence Testimony for various gospel doctrines that are important to them,
memorize the script and then practice it until it comes out of their mouth
smoothly.
Remember, everyone is looking for happiness and fulfillment
in their lives. They simply do not know
where to find it. (DC 123:12) The
gospel of Jesus Christ will bring this happiness and fulfillment that they
seek. Also, everyone will eventually be
open to hearing our message when confronted with a certain set of circumstances
in their lives or when they feel the spirit testify to them. So do not be shy about giving your 2 Sentence Testimony.
Rejection comes when people feel you are telling them what
they should think or believe. It is
difficult for anyone to reject your personal experience and expression of how you
felt from that experience. If it is
short and powerful, the spirit can testify while people think, “Hey, I am
having a similar experience. Maybe I
should learn more about why you feel like you do.”
Every sentence of Chapter 3 in Preach My Gospel contains doctrine and principles of the fullness
of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Select
principles you are passionate about. Then record instances, situations and
experiences in your own life that made these doctrines real for you. Then record how you felt and what you learned. Your statement should be impactful and
interesting to others so they personally relate to your experience.
Finally, the 2
Sentence Testimony has a strong affect when used by members as ‘Comments’
to posts they ‘Like’ and ‘Share’ on Face Book.
President Robinson
